Quinta Real Huatulco — Hotel in Oaxaca

We recently stayed here mid week through the weekend and here’s our takeaway;

-the rooms were nice, albeit they gave us one facing the freeway when there were so many unoccupied rooms. Ordinary, I understand you “pay” for a better view, but we were on our impromptu honeymoon coming from Oaxaca City where we had our wedding at Quinta Real Oaxaca City. They up-charged us for the better view despite knowing we dropped quite a bit of money at their sister hotel.

-it would’ve been kind and thoughtful of the hotel to do something nice, like a welcome amenity since we had JUST married at Quinta Real Oaxaca City

-atm wasn’t working, cc’machine was having difficulties

-staff was generally nice

-we ate here for breakfast which was good. The dinner menu was absolutely disgusting. The fish I ordered had a thick layer of cheese. Tell me why fresh fish needs to be masked with a layer of cheese? My husband ordered the New York steak, ended up getting something completely different that was clearly recently thawed.

-my general takeaway is that this is not a high end resort. The rooms are nice, but the service and food and drink quality is just not there. The entire time I felt disengaged with the staff. I hope the workers are being properly compensated, but it didn’t feel like it. My favorite quote, a nudge to whomever runs this “resort” - “treat your employees the way you want them to treat your customers.” If your customers are happy they will come back and recommend your establishment to others. We will not be back. We’d rather spend our hard earned money on a place that lives up to it’s exterior appearance.

-the beach was nice, not rocky. There are a lot of clearer beaches not far away that you can reach by boat.

the drinks were okay. One of the bartenders was on point, the other not so much

-the one day we didn’t have any cash to leave for house keeping (because the atm was out of service) they didn’t leave us a single bottle of water. Trust that your customers will take care of your staff if they provide good service and fix your atm 😑

-come here to stay in the rooms, eat elsewhere, drink elsewhere. Or maybe wait for them to get better management and...

The hotel is located in a privileged hill by the Tangolunda bay. Our suite's swimming pool overlooked the bay and we had an unobstructed view of the bay that granted privacy. An unbelievable room like we had never been to.

The staff are genuinely friendly and do not beg for nor get disappointed if one doesn't tip. We tipped according to our own capacity and we always felt it was humbly appreciated. A fair extra compensation for their extraordinary service.

The main downside is the food which was just OK (except breakfasts that were surprisingly tasty) but definitely below the expectations of a 5 star hotel like this, also below the expectations of the prices it was offered at. A bit of a disappointment here, which also consumed most of out budget.

The main pools were very classy and generally quiet, the hotel counting with only 28 suites. It was a true pleasure to spend time there as well as at the beach which is also convenietly accessed by the pool area. Optional transportation from the lobby to the pool/beach is available for those that do not mind burning fuel instead of just walking 5 minutes.

Last but not least, TV and Internet. TV channel offering was very limited and it also contained analog stations poorly tuned. I am still wondering why would these be pumped into the internal cable network as they are entirely useless.

Internet was slow and intermittent for the most part. The whole point of this kind of stay is to relax, reconnect and rest. However, as an adult I am able to control myself and, when I do need Internet, I would expect it to work consistently and at moderate speed, especially considering, again, it's a 5 star hotel. Same goes for the TV.

Just minor things to keep in mind, even more so if travelling with kids which, by the way, the hotel allows (it is not an adult-only hotel).

With the aforementioned exceptions, the place makes for an outstanding romantic...

Our stay at Quinta Real was great from beginning to end. The attention to detail by the staff is amazing. Check in with Lissette was smooth and quick. Upon arrival we were greeted by Juan (who's awesome) and given cool eucalyptus infused towels and ice cream. From there the view from the top of the hotel is BEAUTIFUL. There are mosquitoes so I do recommend applying/ bringing bug spray. You can also purchase natural repellent at the local grocery store (Chedraui). We stayed in the king suite that had a hammock and personal pool. The room had a great view and was very spacious. The toiletries offered were toothbrush, toothpaste, a few q-tips, sewing kit, and all of your other normal items offered by a hotel. There is a fan in the sitting area and the a/c works well. My first issue out of 2 was with our a/c, it was leaking water when on. The second, was the water pressure not being the greatest. It's not a deal breaker but definitely noticeable. The food was delicious and I do recommend it however it is on the more expensive side versus going to a local restaurant. Nonetheless, if it's within your budget go for it. We were served by Onofre, Gerardo, Rafael, Miguel, and Gabriel. They were all outstanding and did a great job. I appreciated their attentiveness throughout our stay. During our time there the property itself was quiet and we did not have any issues with loud neighbors. Our cleaning lady did a great job (unfortunately we did not get her name). We enjoyed swimming in the pool and had it to ourselves one afternoon. Upon our departure Jairo took great care of us. He went above and beyond getting our car ready and removing some empty water bottles we had in the back without even being asked. All in all, our stay was great and we look forward to coming back...